Origin Story

Civil Art’s debut project was At the Table, which began as a cold outreach to Christie’s Corporate Social Responsibility team and evolved into a landmark exhibition at Rockefeller Center. Featuring over 40 works by API artists, the exhibition raised over $200,000; half of the proceeds were distributed directly to participating artists to address financial hardship during the pandemic, while the other half was donated to Heart of Dinner, a nonprofit supporting food-insecure and isolated elderly Asian Americans.

The success of At the Table revealed a powerful insight: while the desire to support the API community was abundant, the infrastructure to do so effectively was missing. Civil Art became a catalyst for this support, providing a platform through which individuals could contribute not just financially, but also through service, mentorship, and creative collaboration. The project’s impact reflected the collective efforts of artists, gallerists, financial institutions, writers, editors, publishers, registrars, and patrons, demonstrating the transformative potential of unified community action.

Since its inception, Civil Art has established an impactful foundation of programming that directly benefits our stakeholders and exemplifies what’s possible when we work together in service of collective progress. As a growing ecosystem, Civil Art enables artists and allies from all corners of the creative community to offer support and build sustainable systems of care. While individual efforts may feel limited, together—as a unified, intentional community—we can move mountains.